East Sussex Ranks Among Lowest in Pothole Satisfaction

A survey indicates that public satisfaction with the quantity of potholes in East Sussex is among the lowest in the country. The poll questioned 71,000 individuals on whether the presence of potholes and damaged roads in their local vicinity had improved, worsened, or remained consistent compared to the previous year. East Sussex, Herefordshire, and Nottinghamshire collectively registered a 5% satisfaction score, placing them jointly at the bottom among 96 councils. East Sussex County Council stated that, despite the unfavorable public perception, it recorded 13,000 fewer pothole reports in 2024 than in the preceding year. The AA characterized these figures as “dismal” and urged for an end to the “vicious cycle” of potholes being temporarily repaired only to reappear. Speaking to BBC Radio Sussex in Seaford, residents expressed diverse reactions to the condition of the county’s roads. Tee Nolan commented, “They patch them up and as soon as you get a bit of frost, they open up again.” “They are working on them in Seaford but again they’re just patching them up when they need to strip the road back and start from scratch. It’s throwing money away.” Alistair Venter, another resident, offered a different perspective: “I don’t think it’s bad, if I go to Newhaven or Eastbourne it’s fine. It’s not as bad as what most people make it out to be.” Mike Dumelow recounted, “We have friends and they’ve had a pothole done three times.” He added, “They said it’s so big they can put fish in it.” An East Sussex County Council spokesperson stated: “Like highways authorities up and down the country, we have seen an increase in potholes in recent years due to the more severe weather we have experienced.” The spokesperson further detailed that between January and November 2023, the council received 31,464 reports of potholes and completed 27,958 repairs. In the corresponding period in 2024, 17,741 reports were logged, and 19,333 repairs were carried out. Since the 2020-21 fiscal year, the council has expended £105 million on highway maintenance, despite receiving only £60 million in government funding. It has also hired additional crews to address the growing number of defects and invested an extra £22.5 million in its road network over the past three years. The council estimated that the cost to repair the most severely damaged roads in the county would be £300 million. The National Highways and Transport Network, a performance research organization independent of the government-owned National Highways, commissioned the survey in the early part of the summer. Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.